Legislative Session Review: Tenn Firearms Association

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WMOT) -- WMOT is again this year asking news makers from across the political spectrum to comment on the just concluded 108th Tennessee General Assembly.

Today we hear from John Harris, President of the Tennessee Firearms Association. Harris says his members were expecting to see several new gun rights measures written into law this session, but most never made it out of various legislative committees.

“There was good legislation, such as Rep. Goin’s parks bill, or Senator Beavers and Rep Van Huss’ open carry legislation that should have passed but did not because leadership and our governor did not want that kind of legislation moving forward.”

Harris says the association was also disappointed that the General Assembly failed to make changes to last session’s so-called “guns-in-trunks” bill.

“This abomination that Ron Ramsey wrote as a parking lot bill still has to be fixed because it does not fully protect people from criminal prosecution, and it makes no effort to protect people who commute to and from work from being fired if they do so while in possession of a firearm legally.”

Harris says the association has already secured the support of several legislators to sponsor new gun rights measures in the 109th Tennessee General Assembly.